Short Answer Questions

1. What is shown on the slide that August states is out of place in Act 1 Part 4?

2. Where on the set do the projections appear, according to the stage directions?

3. At the beginning of Act 1 Part 6, there is a slide of a fire. What does August say this is?

4. How is Kirsten related to Cynthia?

5. Which character won a national spelling bee as a kid?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the term which refers to the use of projections in the play. What effect does this theatrical device serve?

2. What does August say blinds a man "to the passing moon?" What does he mean?

3. How does Jean feel about Chad's advances in Act 2? What does August say regarding Chad?

4. What elements of Delia's character are revealed before she appears in the play? What literary term is defined by its use to provide background and inform the readers about the plot, character, setting, and theme of the essay/story?

5. Who's character studied books written by Delia in college? How did he/she feel about those books?

6. Who is suspiciously holding the flashlight in the blackout at the end of Act 1? Why?

7. What is the name of the ancient civilization that is being excavated in the play? What are some of the key characteristics of that society that are mentioned in the play?

8. Who wrote the poem that Dan recites in Act 1? What significance is the poem to the play?

9. How does Dan react to Delia's comment in Act 2 that everyone vanishes "without a trace?"

10. Why did Delia lock herself in her apartment after completing her book? Who found her?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the character of Delia in The Mound Builders. What is her purpose to the plot of the story? What does she know about the actions in the play that the other characters are not aware of?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast the characteristics of Jean and Delia. How do they relate to each other and to other characters throughout the play? How are their appearances similar or different? Compare their outlooks on life, their philosophies and religious beliefs. What other characters in the play do they most reflect?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the roles of women and men in The Mound Builders. What does Delia say regarding women versus men? How do the legacies of the women in the play differ from the legacies of the male characters? Why?